How much money are rappers making off beats?

syfer1324

New member
Obviously there's no right or single answer for this but I just mean like how are rappers making money off beats? I thought they were just putting them on like free mixtapes with songs downloaded for free. How much are they really making? Are they like putting their best shit on iTunes? Is there even a market for small artists on iTunes like that? Just wondering because I heard someone say they sell exclusives for like 3 grand and shit couldn't believe smaller rappers and artists are making money like that selling singles.
 
Most artists don't pay 3k.

The amount made from music varies per artist.

If they are smart they can (and do) monetize their music on multiple levels (eg: digital (streaming, itunes, etc) / physical (cd's still sell) / merch (Shirts, hats, etc) / performance (rocking shows, etc) / licensing (licensing their songs to games, various companies, etc) and more.

The beat / song (product) is the vehicle for the artist's opportunities. A hit song can keep an artist generating revenue for years to come.
 
Most artists don't pay 3k.

The amount made from music varies per artist.

If they are smart they can (and do) monetize their music on multiple levels (eg: digital (streaming, itunes, etc) / physical (cd's still sell) / merch (Shirts, hats, etc) / performance (rocking shows, etc) / licensing (licensing their songs to games, various companies, etc) and more.

The beat / song (product) is the vehicle for the artist's opportunities. A hit song can keep an artist generating revenue for years to come.

About CD's is that true as I thought CD's were/are becoming extinct as this is the streaming/digital era.
 
People still like tangible goods.

Cd's to some are just like vinyl.

While there is a demand most artists I've talked to say they don't expect to make a bunch of money from CD's.
 
Well people still buy CDs. I think the right way would be to focus on streaming today, but still make some CDs. If not, then it's still money left on the table. (I think some people would even buy cassetess, but I guess it won't be profitable enough in relation to time needed to organise that).

I know a rapper who made $1,5k+ off one song on Spotify just from streams, while he bought the beat exclusively for $100.
Other rapper who has incoming check for about 2-3k, also from streaming, his 5 songs. Both of them are not backed by any label.

So yeah, there are definitely rappers, even 'unknown' who make some decent cash on their releases. Those I mentioned aren't famous at all, rather local artists; first one has 500 soundcloud followers and his single which he made 1,5k off on Spotify, has only 5k views on youtube.

It seems like numbers don't really go with revenue. (not always though)
 
Seems I choose the wrong lane, lol. Although I'm not selling beats (yet), my music producers set their price much lower on my ghost production selling site than the mentioned amounts.
The hard thing in this topic that music doesn't makes money directly to the artists. It's all about royalties and performances which are pretty unpredictable.
 
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